CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – When Laura Brecht walked into Prairie High School’s theater to receive the Golden Owl Award for her many contributions in agricultural education during a special ceremony in mid-February, she was surprised to see so many familiar faces in the crowd who came out to honor her.

“I was in total shock when all my students, administrators and family were there to award the Golden Owl Award,” Brecht, an agriculture teacher and FFA adviser at the rural Cedar Rapids school, told Farm World. “I was brought to tears and overwhelmed with joy during the recognition.”

Brecht is one of seven honorees across the state who received the award, as well as a check for $500, and an engraved plaque. These seven will be finalists for Iowa Ag Teacher of the Year and recognized on stage at the State FFA Convention in April in Ames, Iowa.

Presented by the Iowa FFA Foundation and Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co., the Golden Owl Award recognizes agricultural educators across Iowa (as well as nationally) for their tremendous contributions to helping the next generation of agricultural leaders.

During her short tenure at Prairie High School, Brecht has been instrumental in the growth of Prairie’s agriculture program, which has become the 4th largest FFA chapter in Iowa in less than five years, said Kristy Thomann, Prairie High School 9th grade agriculture teacher and FFA adviser.

In fact, Thomann said Brecht has helped grow agriculture student enrollment from roughly 146 students to 250 students.

“Laura is always finding ways to support her students and their passions,” Thomann said. “She consistently stays late to work with students on (FFA) degrees, contests, and helps provide internship opportunities and work experiences for students to prepare them for life outside of high school.”

Brecht grew up on an acreage outside of Columbus Junction, Iowa, and her parents owned the grain elevator in town.

“My dad, Tim Mincks, managed it, and my mom, Lois Mincks, was the family and consumer science teacher at Columbus Junction for 36 years,” Brecht said. “They encouraged me to get involved in organizations and the community. With my mom being an active teacher in the school district, I grew up around the career and technical education world, and I loved how many hands-on, relevant experiences it brought to students.

“I was an active nine-year member of the Cloverleaf 4-H Club in Louisa County,” she said. “I enjoyed completing sewing, baking, home improvement projects, along with showing sheep and broiler chickens. I was the 2016 4-H Queen and 2016 Louisa County Fair Queen. I was a four-year member of the Columbus Junction FFA Chapter in high school. I served as chapter reporter, vice president and president.”

Brecht attended Iowa State University from 2016 to 2020, majoring in agriculture and life sciences education, and completed her master’s degree in agricultural education, also from Iowa State, in 2023.

“I truly believe I was born to be a teacher,” she said. “I grew up in a family of teachers – my mom, grandma, aunts and sister were and are all teachers. I truly enjoyed my time in 4-H and then FFA in high school. It was clear to me during my sophomore year of high school at the State FFA Convention that I wanted to pursue a degree in agriculture from Iowa State University. I just wasn’t sure in what area.

“I contemplated dietetics, then agricultural communications,” she added. “After one semester, I knew something was missing. I talked with Dr. Scott Smalley, an academic adviser for ag ed, and he shared what I would need to complete to change my major. After meeting with him, I knew ag education was for me.”

When asked what it means to her to win the award, she said, “I love being an ag educator. My students continue to amaze me by finding new solutions, ways to engage in agriculture, and passion for making our community a better place through agriculture education. I am very fortunate to work with another fantastic teacher, Ms. Kristy Thomann, to lead all students in our agriculture program.

“Our goal for our students is for each of them to find a place within agriculture, no matter what their personal experience entails,” she said. “We hope to foster an interest in the agriculture program for students to continue to engage in our plant or animal pathways after completing Intro to Agriculture.

“I believe our program does a really good job of offering a wide variety of opportunities for students to engage in agriculture, leadership and service,” she added. “As students continue through the program, they start to define their interests. Through their Supervised Agriculture Experience projects, class projects, and capstone classes, they truly get to practice the skills they hope to refine and pursue.”

She said as she thinks about the future of Prairie High School’s agriculture program, she envisions even more opportunities for community partnerships, student-led discoveries and all seniors completing the senior capstone, the Ag in Industry Internship course.

“Inspiring students comes down to building relationships and listening to them,” she said. “Each year as I learn more and more about each student, I can incorporate that into my daily lessons and opportunities I provide. Sometimes it takes an extra nudge for students to take advantage of the opportunity, but when they do and their eyes light up with pride, it is so worth it.

“In order to inspire future ag educators, I think it is important to be a good teacher first,” she added. “Your students will look to you as a leader as they plan for their future classroom. I’m in the middle of my fifth-year teaching and four former students are pursuing their degree in agriculture education.”

Jessica Tuttle, now a senior at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa, said, “I was inspired by Mrs. Brecht to become an ag teacher because her determined personality and unwavering belief in me and my classmates set the bar for what it means to be a true mentor. She taught us to never settle for less, to push through adversity, and to find the strength within ourselves to overcome any challenge.

“She didn’t just teach agriculture, she taught us how to live it, how to love it, and how to make a difference,” she added. “I was truly inspired by her love for agriculture, FFA and her students, and that is why I became an ag teacher just like my mentor (Brecht) that I hope to be as good as someday.”